Bloomberg: Consumer Sentiment In U.S. Rose In April To Nine-Month High

Consumer confidence rose in April to a nine-month high, showing Americans are growing more upbeat about the economy as the labor market gains traction. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan final index of sentiment increased to 84.1 from a four-month low of 80 in March. The median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 83 after a preliminary April reading of 82.6. Consumers were more optimistic about current conditions than at any time since July 2007 as smaller ranks of the unemployed, near-record stock prices and higher property values help bolster household finances. Further strides in the labor market that generate bigger wage gains would provide additional impetus for the consumer spending that makes up almost 70 percent of the economy. “Consumer sentiment continues to chug higher,” said Brett Ryan, an economist at Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. in New York. “It means people are getting jobs or incomes are increasing or they feel a little bit more stable about their situation.”

Gains in sentiment are translating into stronger sales. Cars and light trucks sold in March at a 16.3 million annualized rate, the fastest since May 2007, following a 15.3 million pace the prior month. Purchases at General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp., Nissan Motor Co. and Chrysler Group LLC all topped analysts’ estimates. “The economy is entering the second quarter on an improved trend,” Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, chief economist at Ford, said on an April 1 conference call. There are “some signs of improving wage and income gains. Very steady consumer confidence is also helping to be a support.” More job opportunities are helping underpin sentiment. Payrolls climbed by 192,000 workers in March after a 197,000 increase the previous month that was larger than first estimated, the Labor Department said earlier this month. Private payrolls, which exclude those at government agencies, exceeded the pre-recession peak for the first time.

EIA: Solar-Electric Generating Capacity Increases Drastically In The Last Four Years

U.S. solar capacity increased significantly in the last 4 years. In 2010, the total solar capacity was 2,326 MW which accounted for a comparatively small fraction (0.22%) of the total U.S. electric generating. capacity. By February 2014, this capacity increased 418% to 12,057 MW, a 9,731 MW gain, and now accounts for almost 1.13% of total U.S. capacity. Net metered applications, which are generally intended to displace retail purchased power to lower the overall energy bill for a host site, have increased each year since 2010 at an annual rate of about 1,100 MW and now total 5,251 MW. Although sunny California has the largest net metered solar capacity (38% of the total), abundant sunshine is not the only growth factor for this sector. Net metered applications are typically incentivized through various state level programs. New Jersey and Massachusetts together represent an additional 21% of the total net metered solar capacity. Overall, nationally the growth in net metered photovoltaic capacity is fairly evenly split between residential and commercial applications.

Utility scale PV applications, which are 1 MW or greater, have also expanded significantly and currently account for 5,564 MW. In 2013 utility scale solar exceeded the capacity of net metered applications. Sunny states like California (2,702 MW, 49% of the total utility scale PV) and Arizona (960 MW, 17%) enjoy favorable siting conditions. However, North Carolina accounts for 340 MW or 6% of the total utility level solar capacity, and is the third leading state in this sector largely due to state incentives. In summary, the U.S. solar capacity has moved quickly from a relatively small contributor to the nation’s total electric capacity into a one of comparative significance. Much like the wind sector growth, which grew tremendously from 6,456 MW in January 2005 to 60,661 MW to January 2014, solar capacity is quite clearly up and coming.

It doesn’t get enough attention, but I still consider the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) one of the more important breakthroughs for progressive governance in the Obama era. That its work on our behalf tends to happen far from the spotlight somehow makes it more impressive – the agency’s work isn’t showy, it’s just effective. It was the CFPB that recently announced multi-million dollar fines for four mortgage insurers for “doling out illegal kickbacks to mortgage lenders in exchange for business.” It was the CFPB that cracked down on a lender for allegedly “paying illegal bonuses to employees who steered home buyers toward higher-interest loans.” It was the CFPB that ended 2013 with “a string of enforcement cases … on lending discrimination, mortgage servicing, online lending and credit card products.”

And it’s the CFPB that keeps adding to its to-do list. Federal regulators are investigating reports that lenders are pressuring thousands of college graduates to immediately repay their full student loan debt when a relative who co-signed the loans dies or files for bankruptcy. So, the CFPB is intervening on consumers’ behalf. The young people are feeling pushed around by lenders, so now they’ll have a government agency doing what they can’t: push back. Remember, congressional Republicans fought tooth and nail to destroy the CFPB, even using unprecedented, legally dubious schemes to prevent the agency from even getting to work. Fortunately for consumers, Republicans failed.

My opinion of NAACP is not very high right now. Not because they were planning to honor someone who turned out to be a racist pig. What’s sick is they were contemplating honoring someone who had a known history of being a racist ;pig – even so far as discriminating against people of color. How obtuse of that organization! Does NO ONE do their homework there? Or were they given generous donations by Sterling therefore chose to look the other way…?
They’d better not honor him in light of his past and present actions. If they do, I’m so done with them.

I am glad other players are speaking out but it is easier to say that you wouldn’t play for Sterling if you are not signed to that team. Especially when you also play for a fantastic coach and you value the fans who I am sure support the team.

There’s no room for Sterling in any league or any neighborhood. He needs to go buy an island and sit there, and invite a whole lot of like-minded people to join him ~ and leave the rest of us the hell alone.

“If the reports are true, it’s unacceptable. It’s unacceptable in our league. It doesn’t matter if you’re white, black, Hispanic, whatever, all across the races. It’s unacceptable and as a commissioner in our league, they have to make a stand, and they have to be very aggressive with it. I don’t know what it’s going to be, but you just can’t have that in our league. We’re the model citizens of all sports around the world and because we’re the most recognizable, I mean, it figures. You see us all the time, you see our logos, you see our players, and for an owner to come out and say the things that he said, it’s very disrespectful, it’s very appalling and one of my best friends and dear friends plays on his team in Chris Paul and I haven’t had an opportunity to talk to him but I can only imagine what’s going through his head.”

How difficult would it be to play with that hanging over…

“I don’t know. I kind of waivered back and forth whether I would actually sit out. If our owner would come out and say the things that he said, I would really have to sit down with my teammates, talk to my family because at the end of the day, our family, and our teammates are way more important than that. Basketball is huge, obviously the playoffs have been unbelievable, and I hate the fact that something like this has to come out when the playoffs have been unbelievable and the game of basketball continues to grow, but there is no room for Donald Sterling in our league. There is no room for him.”

Does it make you angry?

“I’m not angry. Just disappointed more than anything. There is only 30 owners and 400-plus of us. For a player, I just think…I put my…I can only imagine if a player came out and said something of that stature what would happen to us as players. So, I believe in Adam [Silver], I believe in the NBA and they have to do something and do something very fast and quickly before this really gets out of hand. Like I said, *there is no room for Donald Sterling in our league*, man. There it is.”

I have never understood the logic of someone “owning” a sports team – guess it came about because of $$$ – and it invaded my world also – but it should never have been – because it is their passion, their sport and their livelihood it will be very difficult for the players to refuse to play – or for the coach to desert his team. There are no winners here.

Every professional team in the U.S. in owned by an individual or investment group. The only exception is the NFL’s Green Bay Packers, in which the fans are partial shareholders, and actually volunteer plowing snow covered seats prior to games.

That is not the worst of it, 99. The owners blackmail city councils to build 500 million dollar brand new stadiums, or threaten to leave the city to a more *tax break* friendly atmosphere…..leaving huge budget shortfalls that end up with public sector employees getting the boot, and if a team does leave the entire economy built around downtown food/hospitality/etc… is decimated.

In response to the allegations about racist remarks attributed to Donald Sterling on a recorded conversation, National Basketball Players Association president and Los Angeles Clippers’ point guard Chris Paul and NBPA adviser and Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson issued statements about the situation:

“On behalf of the National Basketball Players Association, this is a very serious issue which we will address aggressively. We have asked Mayor Kevin Johnson to expand his responsibilities with the NBPA, to determine our response and our next steps. As players, we owe it to our teams and our fans to keep our focus on our game, the playoffs, and the drive to the Finals.”

Statement from Mayor Kevin Johnson (former player)

“The reported comments made by Clippers owner Donald Sterling are reprehensible and unacceptable. The National Basketball Players Association must and will play a very active role in determining how this issue is addressed. There needs to be an immediate investigation and if the reports are true, there needs to be strong and swift action taken. I have spoken with NBPA President Chris Paul and will be leading the NBPA in addressing the implications of this serious matter. I will be formally reaching out to the NBA today to determine our next steps. While I originally came on to lead the Executive Director search, this issue requires immediate attention from the players association. I will be keeping Chris Paul, the Executive Committee, and all player representatives informed of every step.”

And I have no doubt the fools of the WHPC are ignoring his Asian impact and screaming for comments on the racist statements by Bundy and Sterling. When he replies – it will start all over – as it did with Trayvon.

But you certainly wouldn’t know it since MSM blacklists anything that hints at accomplishment by our President and his team. They must be seething with jealousy.

If you want to know why Americans are so ill-informed, look no further than our pathetic MSM/Koch.

Many Americans who grew up with TV rely on broadcast network news or network radio (e.g., @knx1070, which airs CBS radio network news at the top of every hour – since Angelenos are in their cars a lot, many people here get CBS national news on their daily commute).

I don’t get worked up about cable news viewers (whether Fox or MSNBC) because they are viewed by a fraction of the US population.

But our MSM is truly a disgrace.

1) PBO in Japan:

Judging by TOD, MSM/Koch has declared PBO’s visit to Japan as disappointing or as a failure (I no longer read tweets from most in the MSM, so I’m grateful when TODville links to pertinent tweets).

Your answer should have been Mr. Cuban, this matter need to be look into and if true, something must be done because we can not or will not accept racism from anyone, owners, players, or fans. That should have been your answer Mark Cuban.

While it’s no secret that Sterling is a slum landlord, I’m looking at the timing of this recorded statement with a side eye. This is the first time that the Clippers is in the Playoffs and the Lakers are not.

Do we know who leaked the recording? I have not listened to it, nor will I click on the story. I feel for the Clipper players who have worked so hard for so long for this Playoff. I wish them strength and courage to remain focused and drown out the drama.

I remember when Kobe did give serious consideration to moving over to the Clippers.

Once again, NW, Chipsticks, you’ve done me in. I spent so long on the previous thread, I forgot to eat lunch. Which is fine, I’m not anywhere close to starvation. Trying to formulate a comment in a matter-of-fact (to me) manner: No one even slightly aware of technology could consider all the faces in the many photos of PBO with crowds of people – military, children, people in foreign countries – no one would imagine ALL those photos could be photoshopped to create an impression. No one. Not boner, not cantorwon’t, not mcconnell. What I find most enormous to grasp is the countless millions by now, who have touched PBO, hugged him, seen him up close, wanted to touch him, and he has reached out to those millions, returned the handshakes, the handclasp, the hugs. Millions by now, over the years. With no sign of abating. He seems to walk through every moment of his life fully aware, fully conscious, fully present. I noticed when he was in Oso earlier this week, as one of the first responders brought his two young sons up to meet the President, PBO had a distinct and remarkable shift in his already fine attention span: he immediately connected with those two young boys, asked their names, shook their hands, gently turned them so the photos could be taken. That is what I call LightWork. He lives in a place of Light and Energy, he carries it within, and he channels it into everyone he meets, everything he does. What a fine example of how far our human race might go, if only we can learn from people like President Obama. I include the First Lady in this view, because she also has an enormous capacity to connect with others on a true heart level. The Asian people will see this quality and character far more quickly and clearly than westerners do. Those of us who see, recognize and embrace the gift we have been given in the Obamas are well on the way to becoming part of the biggest change on Earth witnessed in a very, very long time. I mean all of you, TODObots, and BlogChieftessess! Isn’t this just the most exciting time to be alive?

It is clear to me, and I’m sure to HZ, and many of us here, that as we all focus on this particular energy, and maintain our own heart connection, through sharing our thoughts here, we all contribute to make the Light bigger, broader, more encompassing, more inclusive, and very real. We ALL become Light, and this is where we can take the future. PBO is a living demonstration of how to do this, to live in this state of consciousness. The wonderful thing is, we do not go there alone, but in a group, and as the group engages, we are all better people for it. Very real. Very exciting! Very wonderful. It is a worldwide energy form, and all you have to do to be in it, is to Be In It! It’s not about any one of us, it’s about the positive group effort and dynamic. That is what I’ve been hearing PBO saying for all these years. Blessings. So many blessings! :)

MP, this is brilliantly and beautifully stated. I agree with every word and especially love the idea of LightWork. In a real sense, our president has evolved to another to another level and shown us all what that could be like for all of us if we could grow beyond ugly hatred, ignorance and prejudice. On his own, he has done wonders. Imagine what more evolved people could do for humanity and the planet.

Love the sincere and abundant hugs and smiles In President Barack Obama’s America and wherever he goes in the world. We know he’s a treasure. Such a crying shame the lousy media in this country makes it hard for some of our fellow Americans to appreciate how lucky we are to have him.

Judith, I tell anyone I talk to about politics, that I am proud of our President and our First Lady. All the B.S. they have had to deal with, but yet they have shown class and dignity, hail their head high and gone about doing their job.

Except the half dozen commenting on the above article. I am soooo convinced that the Koch folks pay to have people comment on the internet against any person – for any reason – if that person is a supporter of PBO.

Just when you think
People are
Coming together
Might come together
Someone’s voice
On audio
Or written words
Passed around
Open up the door
To an ache to the heart.

But the good will out
More and more we
Call them out
More and more we
Band together
Fighting the same fights
But fighting, nevertheless.

We should carve up
Each day and each evening
Into periods where we
Only sit back in wonderment
About the positive nature
Of our collective existence:
The planet that still holds us up
The air that still lets us breathe
The music that still makes us
Stop and close our eyes.

Our spirits that won’t let go.

Between a rock and a hard place,
Yes.
But the good will out.
The good will out.

No, I believe Caroline merely said that if Hillary would decide to run – and after being asked this next part, specifically, because she had endorsed our guy in ’08 – she could or would vote for her. That’s what any of us would say more or less, just to keep a Democrat in the White House, if I may add that! She handled the reporter (who may have been the asinine Chuck Todd) expertly. Even deftly. :)

In a meeting with government loyalists this week, Putin called the Internet a “C.I.A. project” that has “evolved in this manner”—that is, with interests opposed to Russia’s—ever since its creation. (Though the technical foundation of what became the Internet was laid with the help of the U.S. government, it has long since slipped from American, or any other government’s, possession.) Until recently, it seemed as though the very existence of the World Wide Web was a safeguard against a major crackdown on mass communication by governments. Even if traditional media has come under government pressure, the thinking went in Russia, the Internet remained a realm of free public exchange. But free exchange is the very reason Putin sees the Internet as a major threat.

Putin’s ominous statement followed a continuous line of measures—laws, bills, and initiatives—aimed at restricting online communication in Russia. One recently passed law enables the government to block Web sites without a court ruling (a few have already been blocked). Another bill mandates that bloggers with more than three thousand followers bear the same legal responsibility as mass-media companies, meaning, for example, that such bloggers can be fined if they post inaccurate information. In the Russian legal environment, where court rulings in politically sensitive cases are commonly guided by instructions from, or simple loyalty to, the Kremlin, any unwelcome information will be easily categorized as “inaccurate.” A municipal legislator in Moscow expressed concern that “the special services cannot establish full control over bloggers.” She was especially outraged by bloggers who have voiced doubts over the Kremlin’s policy in Crimea following Russia’s annexation of the peninsula. The city legislature has suggested that such doubts be treated as provocative and “extremist,” a criminal offense commonly used against civic activists and protesters.

Putin has just gone too far. He’s getting nuttier by the day and is freaking out because everyone isn’t falling in line with his wish to conquer and control. How dare anyone question him, fight back or hamper him with sanctions. He’s lashing out with insane theories about things he doesn’t understand–like modern communication technology. He’s a dangerous man and is turning Russia into a hell hole.

Watching BBC World. It did a story on PBO’s trip to Malaysia. Laid out clearly what PBO was doing in his “pivot to Asia”, and the tricky waters he faces. The media doesn’t have to fawn over PBO; it just needs to report accurately.

Putin has become such a megalomaniac, I suspect he’s willing to lose all his money just for the glory of being the “Hero” who will restore the prestige of Russia.

Poor fool. He’s doing exactly the opposite. He’s isolating Russia from the rest of the world. He’s making the whole world lose respect for Russia. And within Russia, he won’t be popular for long; people will wake up pretty quickly when their economy goes down in the toilet, and civil liberties, freedom of the press, freedom of the Internet are destroyed, bit by bit.

There is much talk as to how the racists of today leaned their beliefs in times when such beliefs were the norm – when these young people grow up – they will have learned the truth from PBO. I am continually reminded why his election was a decision for the world that the US can be proud of for all time.

This ought to be brilliant, (and fun to watch the punjabberwits foaming…) I am deeply moved at how gracefully President Obama accepts the blessing of all the spiritual and sacred places he is welcomed into. It’s as if he belongs everywhere!

Bob would never earn them (with all he does!!!), but I had that same catholic education and never got any demerits either (I would now, I’m sure!).

I once was sent to the principal’s office to ask for the resident jar of cold cream (now I’m thinking how germ-filled that was!), to remove my eye makeup during the school day – eye makeup was a definite no-no in the early ’60s, in my school. The principal handed me the jar and gave me the nastiest look I think I’ve ever gotten in my entire life. I think it’s where the expression “If looks could kill” came from – Ha. That’s where we all had to develop our sense of humor, just to get through it, from my POV!